Quote:
Originally Posted by rogthefrog
Yes, they are separate, and I asked Kathy about it. She said she left them separate for now but would gladly and easily build a connector if needed. It didn't sound like she found those connectors necessary for sound purposes, more for structure.
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I actually keep them separate for structural purposes. The harp arm moves a lot more when humidity changes, as evidenced by the bass strings going out of tune while the neck remains unchanged. If they were connected, I'd worry about the harp arm pulling on the neck and altering the action, especially in the long term.
Since the bass strings don't have frets, their geometry isn't critical, so it's fine for the harp arm to move around a bit as long as it doesn't affect the neck.
But better volume/sustain does seem possible with a connector, though I've never tried it myself. And if you maintain constant humidity, then there's no drawback to it.